Montgomery Public Schools has announced its top six candidate finalists for the next MPS superintendent. School board interviews of the candidates begin the week of March 3. Information for the following profile was provided by MPS.

Dr. Constance Evelyn, former superintendent Valley Stream 13 School District, NY, has strengths that lie in her ability to analyze systems holistically, communicate, and build strong relationships with all stakeholders. She has earned the trust and respect of school communities by effectively activating strategic goals and achieving results.

In Auburn, NY, Evelyn managed a budget of $80 million and led the improvement of their financial systems by relentlessly pursuing state resources that had not been accessed in the past. She developed a shared service model with municipalities. This required multiple visits with students, staff, and board members to the capital in Albany and local legislative offices. After capturing millions of dollars in state resources, Evelyn’s team successfully applied for several state and federal competitive grants totaling approximately $13 million. Her team met during town hall meetings, fireside chats, and during “Open Door Fridays with the Superintendent” as some of the activities organizing these efforts.

In Valley Stream, Evelyn extended their $50 million budget by working with the Board and community to pass a historic capital improvement bond totaling almost $40 million, the first in the district’s history. Additionally, her team executed an energy performance contract that stretched its ability to upgrade district facilities by another $10 million and promoted energy savings of over $300,000 annually.

In Auburn and Valley Stream, Evelyn worked closely with board members to develop a plan with key performance indicators that were representative of the communities will as it related to student outcomes. She used a variety of methods to activate community engagement including district strategic plan subcommittees and well as Thought Exchange, a survey tool that communities find engaging and facile.

Auburn’s graduation rate increased by over eight percentage points during her tenure as the superintendent, students with special needs were more included resulting in dramatic gains for students, and she attained adequate yearly progress, successfully removing the district from the state’s priority schools list.

Valley Stream’s math and reading scores exceeded state averages and continued to increase during her tenure as the superintendent for all student groups, and the district initiated a comprehensive prekindergarten program with no waiting list for all four-year-olds.

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Schools

District Students are Victorious at Middle School-Level Competition

Jake Mendlinger, Community Contributor

Valley Stream District 24 is proud to announce that its fifth and sixth-grade students were the only elementary-level participants to both compete and win in the prestigious South Asian American Women’s Alliance (SAAWA) Recreational Mathematics Contest.

“This recognition speaks volumes about the passion, dedication, and talent of our students and educators,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Unal Karakas. “We are incredibly proud of our students for their hard work and for representing Valley Stream 24 with such distinction on a regional stage.”

Now in its second year, the online contest was held in March and designed to challenge middle school students with a variety of advanced mathematical puzzles, riddles, and equations across multiple disciplines. Although the competition is on a middle school grade level, Valley Stream 24’s younger students rose to the occasion and delivered outstanding performances.

A total of nine Valley Stream 24 students were recognized for their accomplishments at a special celebration hosted by SAAWA on Sunday, May 18th, at Levittown Hall. The event honored top-performing students from across the region.

During the ceremony, the contest organizer gave Valley Stream 24 a special acknowledgment, commending the district for being the first to express enthusiastic interest in the contest during its inaugural year and for continuing its participation for a second consecutive year.

Find out what's happening in Malverne-Lynbrookfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

For more information about Valley Stream 24, please visit the District’s website at https://valleystreamschooldistrict24.org and ‘like’ our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VS24SchoolDistrict #MakeTheConnection #VS24 #InnovatingOurFuture

The Juneteenth Jubilee will be held Thursday, June 19, 2025, from 12pm to 5pm. This event will feature cultural entertainment & food, informational booths, interactive activities, children’s games & inflatables, and an interactive performance by The Long Island Nets Dance Team.

The Long Island Nets will be hosting a special basketball clinic for children ages 7 to 14 on the basketball courts. Signups will open May 15 and stay open until filled.

Educational discussions will be held by assembly woman Michaelle C. Solages and the OPRHP Chief Diversity Officer Yolanda Bostic-Williams.

An $8 vehicle use fee will be in effect. All event activities will be free. For more information please contact (631) 321-3510. Stay connected, follow us on Facebook and Instagram @LongIslandStateParksRecreation, or visit parks.ny.gov/events.

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees more than 250 parks, historic sites, recreational trails, golf courses, boat launches and more, and welcomes over 88 million visitors annually. For more information on any of these recreation areas, visit parks.ny.gov, download the free NY State Parks Explorer app or call 518.474.0456. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, the OPRHP Blog or via the OPRHP Newsroom.

A Long Island high-school lacrosse coach “sextorted” at least 30 boys, including a 13-year-old, authorities say.

The crimes allegedly committed by Valley Stream High School assistant boys coach Joseph Garofalo, 20, were so sickening that federal Judge James Wicks denied him bail at a hearing last month — despite the suspect’s family begging and offering up more than $1.5 million in property as collateral.

Garofalo pleaded not guilty to allegedly sexually exploiting children, including a 13-year-old boy he is accused of coercing into sending sexually explicit images to him over Snapchat, newly unsealed court filings show.

The mother of the 13-year-old boy reached out to the FBI in October, saying her son had been targeted by a predator on Snapchat, according to the federal complaint.

Investigators traced the account to Garofalo and said the boy had sent nude photos and videos to him that showed the child’s face.

Garofalo later messaged the teen, threatening to share the explicit content online unless the boy sent more nude photos to him — or even graphic images of his friends, according to the complaint.

“So I’m not gonna delete them for a guy that blocked me unless he gives me a good reason to,” Garofalo allegedly wrote in one exchange with the boy, adding, “send stuff of ur boys naked n I’ll delete.”

When the minor refused, Garofalo responded, “welp then I’m not deleting.”

While most of the coach’s alleged victims are from Long Island, no Valley Stream students were among them, according to district Superintendent Wayne Loper. The schools chief added that Garofalo no longer works for the district.

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As part of their probe, the feds also linked Garofalo to a May 2024 tip from Snapchat to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which flagged three files containing suspected child-sex-abuse material.

In response to a search warrant, Snapchat turned over at least nine separate images and videos involving all different minors that all appeared to be child-sex-abuse material, the complaint states.

When agents searched Garofalo’s home last month, he agreed to a voluntary interview and allegedly admitted to recognizing one of the images, controlling the account, soliciting explicit content from minors, and possessing child-sex-abuse material on his devices.

The judge said Garofalo “previously admitted to FBI agents upon arrest that he has an ” ‘addiction’ to the type of troubling behavior at issue here and, as such, has been unable to stop.”

The defendant’s lawyer, Anthony La Pinta, said in a statement, “These allegations come as a shock to the Garafolo family.

“Joseph is known to be a respectful, caring and hard-working young man.”